Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Two weeks after his defeat to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, Jannik Sinner returned to winning ways on his Qatar Open debut in Doha with a solid 6-1, 6-4 win over Tomas Machac. With his 70-minute victory, the second seed extended his winning streak at this level to 11 matches, having won titles in Beijing and Vienna last October.
During his dominant first-set win, Sinner lost only six points on serve and calmly dealt with Machac’s strong start to the second set. He missed three match points while returning in the ninth game, a thrilling exchange filled with big winners from both players. Sinner then closed out the match confidently on his own serve.
With top seed and rival Carlos Alcaraz also in Doha, Sinner will look to maintain the pair’s stranglehold whenever they share a draw. Since Andrey Rublev’s triumph in Madrid in May 2024, no player other than Sinner or Alcaraz has captured a tour-level title at an event featuring both of them, ATP reports. The world No 2 Italian will next take on Alexei Popyrin, who eased past Qatari wild card Mubarak Shannan Zayid 6-0, 6-2.
Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev bounced back from his first-round defeat in Rotterdam by earning a clinical 6-4, 6-2 win over Shang Juncheng in Doha. The 30-year-old, who triumphed in 2023, is one of three former champions in the draw alongside Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov.
Jakub Mensik and Arthur Fils also booked their spots in the second round where they rallied to three-set wins. Sixth seed Mensik overcame qualifier Jan Choinski 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-4 and Fils defeated Kamil Majchrzak 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4.
